


Snowbound

by lisavslisa



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: All the boys except for Liam have minor roles in the story, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Friends to Lovers, Skiing, Smut, ski vacation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-17
Updated: 2016-08-11
Packaged: 2018-01-04 22:58:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1086664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lisavslisa/pseuds/lisavslisa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              
<p></p><div class="center">
  <p>
    <br/>
    <strong>What had Cara truly signed on for when she agreed to a 'guys' weekend? She figured there would be drinking and skiing - maybe not in that order. But she never planned on being stuck in a blizzard with her best friend Liam with no way of keeping warm besides body heat. </strong>
    <br/>
    <strong>The entire infrustructure of their friendship changes in one night, and it takes them, and their friends, the rest of the trip to wrap their heads around it.</strong>
  </p>
  <p> </p>
  <p> </p>
  <p> </p>
  <p>“Something changed last night.”<br/>“Last night <em>everything</em> changed.”</p>
</div> <p> </p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1: try not to kill us.

**Author's Note:**

>   
>    
> 

Cara turned to look over at her best friend who was driving the SUV that was currently trudging through a heck of a snow storm, “the weather’s getting pretty bad.”

“Yeah. Radar says there’s a huge patch of bad weather right above us,” Liam replied, looking down at the iPhone in his free hand.

“Well, _I_ say you shouldn’t even be looking at that thing while you’re driving. I would like to make it out of this alive,” Cara said, snatching his phone out of his hand so he could focus on driving.

“You act like I’ve never driven in snow, Care. We live in the UK, you know.” He scoffed out a laugh at his dramatic road trip partner.

“You act like the road is _actually_ visible in this shit. Pay attention to what you’re doing, Payno. _Seriously_. Both hands on the wheel,” Cara said sternly, flapping her hand at him to get him to put his eyes back on the mess of a road in front of him.

“We’re going to be fine,” Liam chuckled amusingly as he focused his eyes on the outside line of the road, which was getting harder and harder to see through the blizzard they were currently in.

Cara felt Liam’s phone vibrate in her hand and instinct immediately brought her eyes down to look at the screen, seeing that he had a new text message.

“ _Chloe_ just sent you a text,” she said, enunciating the girls name with an air of annoyance.

Liam quickly reached out for the phone, “give it to me.”

“Not on your life, Liam. Watch the road!” Cara shrieked, keeping the phone away from him.

“Cara, what the fuck?” Liam snapped at her.

“I’m not gonna let you text and drive, dumbass. Have you read _those_ statistics? _Pssh_. And in a blizzard? I don’t think so,” Cara said, tucking Liam’s phone under her leg. Liam grumbled under his breath at his best friend.

“What do you see in that priss anyway?” Cara scoffed, rolling her eyes. She really didn’t agree with her friend’s choice in women.

“What do you care?” Liam shot back at her with just as much attitude.

“She’s just… _stupid_. I don’t understand why you go for girls like that?” Cara asked him.

“What… completely _gorgeous?_ _”_ He snickered.

“Caveman,” Cara grumbled, rolling her eyes again. Liam looked over at her, giving her one long look before his eyes went back to the road ahead.

“What? Are you jealous?” He asked, purposely trying to get a rise out of her. This was how their relationship had thrived for years – the give and take of bullshit.

“ _Psssssh_. _Puh_ -lease, dude,” Cara said dramatically, letting out a boisterous laugh. Liam laughed out loud at her reaction.

“You are. You’re jealous,” Liam snickered, pushing it further.

“Yeah. _Ohhh-kay_ , Payno,” Cara scoffed sarcastically, pursing her lips at him.

“You wanna ride the _Payne-train_ , don’t you?” He laughed, teasing her more.

“Oh my god. Did you just—did you…? Remind me – why are we friends?” Cara asked, looking over at him incredulously.

“Cara wants on,” Liam teased, doing a little dance in his seat to make her even more uncomfortable.

“ _Christ!_ You’re gonna make me puke!” Cara yelped, shoving her hand into his arm. Liam’s continuous laughter only dug further under her skin, making her want to scream.

“Shut up, you shit!” Cara said, smacking him on the arm.

“Hey, if I would’ve known you wanted me all this time…” Liam trailed off to let the comment fester within her.

“DUDE! Shut. The. Fuck. Up. You’re seriously going to make me kill myself right now,” Cara growled at her so-called best friend. Liam laughed louder and harder.

“You’re a dick,” she said under her breath, scowling out the window in front of her.

Liam smirked over at her, “so, the thought of having sex with me makes you want to kill yourself and _I’m_ the dick?”

“Are we really talking about this right now?” Cara asked as her head snapped in his direction.

“Yes. You’ve hurt my feelings, Cara Jane. You cannot fathom a reality where the two of us have—

” Liam began.

“DON’T even say it,” Cara snapped, shaking her head to immediately silence him.

“SEX, SEX, SEX!” Liam burst out, taunting her with an evil grin.

“Fuck off,” Cara grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest, turning away from him altogether. Liam couldn’t help but laugh.

He loved how rough around the edges she was. She cursed more than anyone he ever met, began or ended sentences with ‘dude’ more often than not, and acted more like a bloke sometimes than a lady, but Liam loved it all. She was his best friend since nursery school. He would never trade his childhood with her for anything. And he loved getting a rise out of her more than almost everything in the world.

“Are we almost there?” Cara asked from her side of the vehicle a little while later.

“Really?” Liam deadpanned, looking over at her momentarily.

“What?” Cara asked, furrowing her eyebrows at him.

“Can one road trip in the history of road trips ever end without a form of that question being asked?” Liam scoffed playfully.

“No. _Are we there yet?_ _”_ Cara asked sarcastically, narrowing her eyes at him spitefully. Liam laughed out loud and focused back on the road without answering her question.

“Seriously?” Cara asked flatly, looking over at Liam once again.

“What?” Liam asked obliviously.

“Are we _friggen’_ almost there yet or what?” Cara pressed and let out a little laugh.

“Does it look like I can tell if we’re almost there yet? Do you see this snow!?” Liam asked, pointing his hand forward toward the windshield.

“You aren’t going to miss the turn are you!? I don’t want to be in a car with you any longer than necessary,” Cara scoffed playfully.

Liam sent her a glare, “low blow.”

“How did I get stuck driving up with you anyway?” Cara pressed on jokingly.

“Because nobody wanted to ride with _you_. It’s me who’s ‘stuck’,” Liam chuckled, turning the joke back on her.

“Ha-ha. This guy with the jokes,” Cara laughed unenthusiastically, pointed her thumb over at him and rolling her eyes in the process.

“You were coming at me first,” Liam protested through a laugh.

“When are the other lads coming up?” Cara asked curiously, dropping the banter almost immediately.

“They shouldn’t be too far behind us. Maybe an hour or so. Niall had some stuff to take care of and couldn’t come up right away so the rest of the blokes stayed behind with him. My name is on the reservation for the cottage and I’m the only one with a key so that’s why we’re going now,” Liam answered, bobbing his eyebrows at her.

“They’re never going to make it,” Cara mumbled, looking out at the rapidly falling snow and treacherous mountains all around them.

What a great plan to go on a ski trip to Scotland in a blizzard.

 

******

 

When they finally pulled up into the driveway of the cottage Liam rented, all Cara could feel was relief. Her body was so tense from the horrible driving conditions and Liam’s horrible driving. Of course he _did_ end up missing the turn and they had to double back, almost skidding into the road barrier – that _had_ it broken, the whole SUV would have gone tumbling, not so gracefully, down the side of a mountain.

“I am just glad to be out of that damn truck with you behind the wheel,” Cara grumbled as the two of them met up at the back of the vehicle to grab their bags.

Liam scoffed with a cocky grin, “like you could drive any better.”

“I wouldn’t have almost sent us down the mountain,” she scoffed.

“Honest mistake,” he said, smirking at her.

“Yeah. Remind me to steer clear of the heady combination of you, a vehicle, a mountain and a blizzard,” Cara said, elbowing him playfully in the side.

“You’re here. In one piece, might I add. Quit complaining,” Liam said, grabbing his backpack out of the back, strapping it on him before grabbing his case of _beer_ _._

“I am praying to the God’s I survive this weekend with life and limbs,” she quipped, strapping her own backpack to her back.

“From this point on, your life is in your own hands. We all know you’re a terrible skier,” Liam laughed outright as he headed toward the cottage through the thick blankets of snow that continued to fall all around them.

“Screw off, Payno!” Cara yelled after him, slamming the back door of the SUV as she hauled in her own stash of alcohol.

Once they were tucked away inside of the building, Cara didn’t feel quite so out of control. Yet, she still felt anxious. The uncertainty of the weather conditions weighed heavily on her, and knowing the majority of her friends were still traveling up in the monster of a blizzard sat with her, wreaking havoc on her mind.

“It’s freezing in here,” Cara said, swiping her hands up and down her arms after she set down her bags.

“Seriously, Care – quit complaining. We’re in a massive cottage on vacation. If you’re cold, start a fire,” Liam said, pointing toward the fireplace.

“I wasn’t complaining. I was just saying,” Cara mumbled under her breath as she walked toward the hearth.

As Liam went to work on getting the heat running, Cara built a pretty good fire in the fireplace. She was actually pretty surprised how easy it was. She hadn’t built and started a fire since she was a kid and was kind of doubting she still had the skills to get it going. But it started blazing right away with enough kindling. Once the fire was roaring, she began wandering down the hallway to lay claim on a bedroom. _First come, first serve, right?_

Each room was bigger than the next, but she found a nice sized one that had a connecting bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub, and she was set.

“CARA!” She heard Liam bellow in almost a frightened tone. She took off running back down the hallway toward the main room.

Black smoke was billowing out of the fireplace as Cara stood wide-eyed watching as Liam furiously tugged at the fireplace’s flue chain.

“Liam, oh my god,” she gasped.

“It won’t open,” Liam said, looking back at her with an almost panicked look.

“I pulled it open when I started it. I’m not an idiot,” Cara immediately defended herself.

“I’m not saying you didn’t. I’m saying it’s broken and never opened in the first place,” Liam shot back at her.

“What are we going to do?” Cara asked, coughing from the clouds of smoke the fire was producing.

“We’ve gotta put it out. The flue’s broken. There’s nowhere for the smoke to go except into the cottage,” Liam said, rushing toward the kitchen. Cara followed quickly.

“We need water. Fill up these bowls,” Liam said, grabbing a couple of large mixing bowls out of the cabinet.

Once he filled his bowl in the sink he immediately rushed over to the fireplace and doused the fire with the water, which seemed to do the trick. But Cara still threw her bowlful on it for good measure.

“Does this place even have smoke alarms?” Cara asked, looking over at Liam with furrowed brows.

“Broken flue, no smoke alarms. Seems legit,” Liam said, shrugging his shoulders, making Cara laugh with his sarcastic wit.

And a second later, out of nowhere all the lights went out on them.

“And no power. _Brilliant_ ,” Liam added flatly, sarcasm rolling out with his words.

“Are you fucking KIDDING ME!?” Cara shouted, throwing her arms up in the air.

Liam and Cara just stood looking at each other for a moment through the darkness, trying to fathom what the hell they were going to do. Their predicament was overwhelming and not the least bit comical, but they both started laughing uncontrollably anyway.

“This _would_ happen to us,” Liam laughed.

“It totally would. Just our fucking luck,” Cara laughed with him as she turned on the light on her cell phone so they could actually see.

Liam’s text tone pulled them out of their hysterics.

“Give me back my phone,” Liam said, holding out his hand.

“Not if it’s _Chloe,_ ” Cara said in the same snotty tone as before. She pulled his iPhone out of her back pocket and checked the sender.

Liam smirked at her, still holding out his hand, “jealous.”

“It’s Niall,” she said flatly, slapping the phone down in his palm, and watched as Liam quickly read the text.

“ _’_ _The roads are pretty bad. Got a hotel. Terrible cell service. Be up in the morning,_ ’” Liam read their friends text out loud.

“ _All_ of them?” Cara asked, looking wide-eyed at her best friend.

Liam looked at her like she was crazy, “well, yeah. They’re _all_ driving up together.”

“So we’re just stuck… here… without power… without heat… left to die?” Cara asked dramatically.

“Shit,” Liam said, looking around the open space.

“What?” Cara asked, feeling the panic start to involuntarily swell in her chest.

“No heat,” Liam said, looking back into her eyes, looking slightly panicked himself.

“We’re halfway up a _bleeding_ mountain, Liam – with NO POWER, NO HEAT, and a fireplace we can’t bloody use. We’re going to die,” Cara said dramatically.

Liam rolled his eyes at the drama queen, “we’re not going to die, Cara. Relax.” 

Cara quickly looked down at her cell phone and began floating her arm around to try to gain better cell phone reception.

“Jesus Christ,” she grumbled, shaking the phone in her hand as Liam was busy doing the same thing to his.

“ _Seriously?_ No cell phone reception. Our friends are in a hotel somewhere. We’re miles away from civilization in a bloody blizzard, Liam!” Cara panicked.

“STOP TALKING!” Liam snapped, trying his best to think of a plan. Cara’s jaw snapped shut as her eyes widened, looking at her friend.

“Okay, we might die,” Liam said, letting his shoulders slump.

“LIAM!” Cara yelped, smacking his arm.

“I’m kidding,” he said unconvincingly.

“Liam, what are we going to do?” Cara whined.

“Well, hopefully they’ll get the power back on soon and the heat will come back on,” Liam said, really hoping his words would trigger their meaning.

“And if it doesn’t?” She asked, looking at him with wide eyes.

“Then we get naked,” he said seriously, looking over at her.

“LIAM!” Cara yelped again, smacking him across the chest.

“I’m serious!” Liam laughed, rubbing his chest where she hit him.

“No!” Cara protested.

“I’m serious, Cara. Body heat, alright. We get naked under a bunch of blankets and we snuggle,” he said with a smirk.

“Liam James, I am not getting naked with you, dude. You’ve already seen my boobs _once_ in this lifetime! And frankly that was enough.”

“WHEN!?” He scoffed at her.

“When my bikini top fell off in the pool!”

“Oh Christ. _When?_ When you were thirteen?” Liam laughed, rolling his eyes.

“Yes!” She said, crossing her arms over her chest, thinking of the memory. She was so embarrassed when it happened. So much so that she was still haunted by it today.

“Cara, that was over a decade ago,” he laughed out loud. To be honest, Liam had a few fantasies about Cara after he saw her boobs when they were kids. He’d never admit it out loud. But he did.

“Besides, they’ve sure as hell developed since then, haven’t they?” He said, poking her side right by her left boob.

“Liam!” Cara yelped, smacking his hand away.

“What?” He laughed mischievously.

“Don’t you dare,” she said, wagging her finger at him.

“What? You want to wrestle? It’ll warm us up a bit,” he laughed, bringing his shoulder down like he was about to tackle her.

“Liam James Payne!” She threatened, narrowing her eyes at him through the darkness.

Without another word, Liam charged her, picking her up swiftly at the waist and throwing her over his shoulder before tackling her onto the couch.

“I fucking _hate_ you,” she said matter-of-factly as she swiftly went to re-doing her ponytail he just messed up.

“You love me,” he said confidently as he stood up straight and walked back toward the hallway leading to the bedrooms with his cell phone light to guide him.

“Where are you going?” She called out to him, but he didn’t answer.

“Alright. I’ll just stay here and get murdered by the fucking abominable snowman,” she mumbled under her breath.

Cara sat up straight on the couch and began fiddling with her phone again, trying to get some sort of a signal – maybe send out an S.O.S. or something.

“Okay, but seriously. Get naked,” Liam said a few minutes later, coming out to the living room carrying an armful of blankets.

“No way in hell,” Cara said, shaking her head. Liam scoffed at her, immediately dropping the pile of blankets on the floor.

“Wow, Care. You sure know how to deflate and completely stomp on a bloke’s ego,” Liam said, smirking at her as he turned on the battery-operated lantern he managed to find on his short quest through the cottage.

“Man-eater,” she said, pointing her finger back at herself as Liam set the lantern on the fireplace mantle, lighting up the room just enough for them to see each other.

“Nah. You just haven’t found the proper bloke yet,” Liam said, giving her a sideways smirk as his eyes danced up and down her body.

Cara shook her head as she kicked off her boots, “okay, seriously. Don’t give me that look right before I’m about to get naked in front of you for the first time in the fifteen years we’ve known each other, okay. That’s not working for me.”

“You’re getting naked?” Liam asked, sounding a little more excited than he had wanted to. Cara’s eyes widened as she looked back at her best friend.

“ _Shut it_. Just lay out the blankets,” Liam said, rolling his eyes again as he took off down the hallway to get more bedding. He planned on grabbing every blanket he could find so they at least were lying on something comfortable while they froze to death.

 


	2. Part 2: keep warm, keep safe.

When Liam came back out Cara was dressed in sweatpants and a sweatshirt, with her scarf around her neck, boots on her feet, and mittens on her hands. He rolled his eyes over the fact that she never listened to him… _ever_. That was just Cara though – stubborn and independent.

“I’m still freezing,” Cara said, draping her jacket over her shoulders.

“I’m telling you. We’ve got to get naked,” he said quirking his eyebrow at her. Cara sent him a near death glare that got him laughing almost immediately.

“Why do you _hate_ me so much, Cara Jane?” Liam laughed blithely as he added pillows to their massive pile of blankets.

“You give me no choice usually,” she shot back playfully.

“Ha,” he laughed as he pulled off his sweatshirt and t-shirt all in one swipe.

“Are you seriously getting naked, Liam?” She asked.

“I thought we already went over this,” he said, dropping his trousers, leaving him in his boxer briefs.

“Oh, _Jesus_ —” She said, shielding her eyes.

“Oh, don’t act like you’ve never seen a penis before,” Liam scoffed as he kicked off his socks and got halfway under the pile of blankets.

“Shut it,” she snapped, narrowing her eyes at him.

“Ooh, Cara. It’s cold under here. I need your warmth,” he said, sliding further under the big pile of fluff.

“Well, if you were wearing your damn clothes, you wouldn’t _need_ me,” she shot at him.

“Are you gonna stand out there all night—wearing all of that?” He asked as his eyes did a once over on her body again.

“ _Fuck_. I hate you,” she grumbled as she rolled her eyes and removed the jacket she just put on.

Liam watched every move she made – every piece of clothing being shed off of his best friend’s body until she was only in a tank top and pajama bottoms.

“Off,” he said, motioning her to drop the bottoms.

“This is as far as the strip show goes, Payno,” she said, eyeing him suspiciously.

“My legs are _soooo_ cold, Cara,” he whined over-exaggeratedly.

“I bet they fucking are,” she growled, getting annoyed with how out of her comfort zone she was. But Liam always had his way – with everything.

“Care- _rahhh_ ,” he whined.

“Fine!” She growled, swiftly pushing her bottoms down to her ankles and kicking out of them before she darted under the blankets with him.

“Thank you,” he said, smiling widely at her as she settled down next to him.

“I swear to god, if you pop a boner…” She warned, leaving the threat hanging in the air.

“I’ll find a place to stick it,” he said, smirking mischievously at her.

“Pig!” She laughed, shoving him hard with her hands.

“ _Cara!”_ Liam said aggressively, wrapping his arms tightly around her, smashing her to his chest.

“Liam! Jesus Christ!” She yelped, trying to fight him off.

“Cuddle me. _Cuddle me_ , Cara!” Liam said playfully, loosening his grip around her.

“Maybe if you didn’t come at me like a bloody rapist!” She said as she let out a genuine laugh.

“Have you met me? I don’t need to rape to get girls,” he said confidently.

“Yeah, it’s afterward when the girls take off running,” she shot back at him.

“You little shit,” he growled, grabbing her wrists, wrestling with her until he had the upper hand. Cara tried to fight him off as she laughed uncontrollably underneath him.

“You’re going to pay for all your snippy little, bitchy comments, _Care-bear_ ,” Liam said, using the nickname she hated as he assaulted her with tickles.

“SHIT! Liam! No! Liam! NOOO! Stop it!” Cara yelped, flailing around trying to buck him off of her as she giggled manically below him.

“Repeat after me, Cara,” Liam said as he paused his assailment.

“Never!” She shouted at him.

“Cara! Repeat after me!” Liam said, tickling her again.

“Liam!” She shrieked.

“’My best friend Liam is super sexy and is a total babe-magnet,’” Liam said, smirking at her.

“Are you kidding me—” She shot at him.

“Cara!” He said, going on another tickle blitz.

“DAMN IT! Liam! Okay, okay,” she shrieked unpleasantly.

“Say it, _Care-bear_ ,” he said, smirking down at her.

“Fine! ‘My best friend Liam is a proper dork—‘” She started.

“You!” Liam said, digging his fingers into her ribcage again.

“Shit! Okay—‘super _sexy_ and is a total babe-magnet,’” she repeated back in a terrible mimic of his voice.

“Good girl,” Liam said, smirked down at her, loosening his grip on her wrists.

“Ow. _Jesus_ ,” Cara grumbled, rubbing her wrists as she simultaneously bucked her hips up to get him off of her.

“ _Ohh_ ,” Liam moaned, getting caught off guard by her motions, which sent a wave of pleasure all the way through him.

“ _Ohmygod_ , get off of me,” she yelped, disgusted as she pushed him off of her.

“What? Get off _on_ you?” He smirked at her as he took his place next to her in the mound of blankets.

“You wish, you pervert,” she snapped at him.

“Maybe I _do_ wish,” he shot back at her, causing her to freeze and hold her breath as she stared at him wide-eyed. Liam stared back at her too, for a few moments before a smirk formed on his face and he burst out laughing.

“Oh my god. I had you!” He laughed.

“FUCK OFF, YOU ARSEHOLE!” Cara yelled, punching him as hard as she could wherever she could, connecting her fists over and over with his upper body.

“Ow, ow – CARA!” Liam yelped, gripping onto her wrists again to hold her in place.

“I hate you with every fiber of my being,” she seethed at him, her eyes narrowed into slits.

“Except you don’t,” he said, smiling confidently at her.

“Oh, but I do,” she shot back.

“You love me just as much as I love you,” he laughed.

“Stop saying stupid shit like that,” she snapped, ripping her wrists out of his grasp.

“Like what? That I love you?” He asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“You’re stupid,” she grumbled, turning her back to him as she tried her best to get warm by herself under the covers.

“Cara,” Liam breathed, wrapping his arms around her stomach, pulling her back into the front of his body so they were spooning.

“Leave me alone, Liam,” she warned.

“When have you ever known me to leave you alone?” He breathed lowly in her ear, creating goose bumps on her neck, sending a shiver of warmth through her entire body.

“Liam,” she said softer, more relaxed, not really trying to fight him off anymore.

“Yeah?” He breathed into her ear again and she got the same warming feeling.

She slowly turned onto her back, still in his arms, so she could look into his eyes. And they just stared, unsure of what to say to one another.

“You want a ride on the _Payne-train_?” He asked, smirking down at her, breaking them out of the intense moment.

“OH MY GO—” She grumbled, turning away from him, pushing out of his arms.

“ _Choo-choo_ ,” he mimicked quietly.

“You’re fucking disgusting,” she said, still trying to worm her way out of his arms as he fought to keep her in them.

“Cara, Cara. Come on, I’m kidding,” Liam laughed out loud as he successfully pulled her back to him.

“You’re so stupid,” she shot at him.

“I know. I’m stupid. We all know that,” he laughed.

“Why do I even try with you?” She huffed.

“I don’t know. Wait—try what?” He asked, turning her to him.

“Being your friend!” She shot at him.

“You’ll always be my friend,” he said seriously. She rolled her eyes at him as he hovered slightly above her.

“Cara,” he said quietly, looking down at her – _really_ looking at her. 

Her wide hazel eyes looked back up into his. Her unruly brown hair flowing every which way on the pillow underneath her head. Her full pink lips set in a straight line as she eyed him skeptically. She was truly beautiful. He always knew it. Even when they were little he knew it. He wasn’t so oblivious that he never noticed what was right in front of him. He just never had the instinct… until now.

Liam’s lips came down, pressing against hers – hoping and praying it wasn’t going to turn into one of the worst mistakes of his life. Knowing Cara, it could go either way. But as he felt her lips become pliable beneath his, he knew he read all the signs correctly. Liam’s hands found her bare hips as their kisses grew deeper and more passionate. He almost couldn’t believe it was happening, but he tried not to think of any disastrous outcomes that might be in their future. He just focused on the connection of their lips and hips, and lived in the moment.

“Liam, what are we doing?” Cara’s breathless voice rang in his ears as she pressed her hands firmly against his chest.

“Cara, _shhh_ ,” Liam said, looking down into her eyes, leaving a light kiss against her lips.

Her wondering eyes looked back up into his and he could see an array of emotions in them – from surprise to curiosity to want to need, and he could even see the consent she was emitting as she looked up at him.

“Is this… okay?” He asked as he leaned in kissing her lips again, just to make sure it was what she really wanted. He saw her head nod before he heard the quiet whimper of _‘mm-hmm’_ that came from her lips.

“Good,” he breathed against her lips before connecting them again.

This time he wasn’t going to hold back. This time he was going to show her things he never had before. And he was pretty sure she was on the same page as she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, pulling him closer as their tongues danced together in quiet synchronicity.

Cara could feel Liam’s growing hardness pressed against her leg and surprisingly she didn’t mind. She had no idea what they were thinking as they started to cross a line of no return, but she didn’t have it in her to protest or stop them – not again. It was crazy to her that she felt this way all of a sudden, but somehow it all felt almost… _right_. They both might regret it in the morning… or maybe not. Cara didn’t want to think that far ahead. She was there… with Liam, his body pressed tightly against hers, warming her and freeing her and she didn’t want to say no. Not when deep down she truly wanted it – maybe for longer than she cared to admit. It wasn’t like she sat at home pining for him all these years, though. She just, you know, noticed him. She noticed how he cared for her more than any girl he ever did in his life. She noticed the little smile that was always on the edge of his lips for her. She noticed how his eyes away wandered her frame, whether he meant them to or not. She noticed things. And she always found some sort of attraction to him – whether it be his physical appearance or just his outstanding wit. She loved him more than she loved almost anyone – platonic-love, happy-love, love-love, whatever-love. She always loved him in one form or another.

Cara pressed her hands against Liam’s bare chest, breaking their kiss, and Liam looked down into her eyes with a look of question before she let out a giggle and shoved him hard enough to push him onto his back. She immediately pulled herself up, straddling her legs over his hips, pressing her palms down against his chest as his hands found solace on her hips.

Liam chuckled lightly as he looked up into his best friends eyes. He always kind of knew she’d be a _take-charge_ kind of girl in intimate situations, and he was fully willing to let her.

“It’s so cold in here,” she shivered lightly as she hovered above him, outside of the blankets.

“There are plenty of activities that can rectify that situation, Cara,” he offered, smirking up at her as his fingers trailed up inside of her tank top, feeling her warm flesh beneath his.

“I bet you have a few ideas,” she retorted with a sly smile taking over her lips.

“A few,” he said, pushing up the fabric of her tank top with his wrists as his hands went further up, holding her at her ribcage right below her breasts.

Cara leaned forward, kissing his lips, causing his hands to slip around to the bare skin of her back, holding her against him firmly. He could feel the peaks of her hardened nipple grazing across his own skin that speckled with goose bumps from the cool air and from _her_. Her teeth tugged at his bottom lip, sending a sharp sensation of pleasure all the way down his body, like the nerves in his lip and the nerves in his cock were tied together in some awesomely unexplained way.

Cara bucked her hips against Liam’s, causing a hiss to escape his lips from the pleasurable sensation. She was suddenly causing him to breathe a little bit deeper and swallow a little bit harder with the way her body moved above his.

“Cara,” Liam growled playfully, grabbing her by the hips and flipping her onto her back, wanting more than anything to be the one causing her body to writhe with pleasure. She giggled below him as he cradled his hips between her opened legs and kissed up her throat. His hands were still working their way up her shirt, touching and loving her soft, warm skin.

As Liam’s mouth moved down her clavicle, Cara’s head titled back, her eyes shut up tightly, trying to appreciate every moment they were together. The contrast between his soft lipped kisses and the chaste scratching of his facial hair across her skin was turning her on more than she could even comprehend. And when he pushed up the front of her tank top, exposing her breasts, she almost felt self-conscious – _almost_. Until his hands gently cupped them, looking down at them like he was worshiping her. She felt the unmistakable burning of tears in the back of her eyes as she watched him watch her. He was so pure and so gentle and so loving. It was almost too much for her to bear.

When Liam’s head moved down, taking the first nipple into his mouth, an involuntary moan escaped her lips. His mouth was so warm and so inviting in the crisp air all around them. She wanted him to warm her – every part of her.

His mouth didn’t leave her skin as he left a trail of kisses between her breasts to take in the other nipple, teasing it and tasting it like he did the first one. He was impeccable. He was amazing. He was completely doing her in. And when his hand slithered between their bodies, moving lower and lower until it was cupped around her mound, she could do nothing but hang her head back and try to focus on her breathing.

Liam’s lips met with her throat once again, kissing and nipping and teasing her skin as his hand began to move below them. First his palm in slow circular motions, right above her soft little bundle of nerves. And then his fingers began dancing across her panty line, until they were maneuvering their way in to find her heat.

Dipping one finger in as he simultaneously, moved his palm, and kissed her neck, sent her mind into a complete frenzy, her breathing becoming erratic almost immediately. When the second finger dipped in and he began moving them in and out of her, her grip around his neck tightened, like she was holding on for dear life. And maybe she was. She felt so out of control. She felt like her head was going to explode – _hell_ , her whole body might explode with Liam’s quiet ministrations. She wanted it to.

Cara’s quiet moans soon became gasps of pleasure as Liam began working his thumb in circles around her hypersensitive spot as his fingers moved in and out of her easily.

“Oh, _God_ , Liam,” she groaned helplessly below him.

“Do you like that?” He breathed against the base of her throat.

“ _Mm-hmm_ ,” she hummed, her throat vibrating against his lips.

“Are you warm yet?” He breathed, nuzzling his nose right below her earlobe.

“Not… not warm enough,” she stammered as her breathing shuttered.

“Mmm. We could work on that,” he chuckled lightly as his fingers slipped out of her, both his hands coming up to stabilize his body above her.

“ _Mmm_ ,” she responded the only way she could since he put her mind out of commission.

His smile was more of a satisfied smirk as he was suspended above her, looking down at the beautiful girl beneath him. His head came down, kissing the center of her stomach before he slowly started a decent of kisses down her torso. Her body tensed and relaxed and writhed from his touches, and she was sure she was going mad under the spell he put on her.

When his lips met with the top of her panty line, her entire body tensed.

“Liam…” She breathed, gripping onto his shoulders to stop him.

“What’s the matter?” He asked, looking up at her with wondering eyes.

“You don’t have to,” she said, trying to rein in some of the control she usually had with him.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, looking at her more concerned this time.

“You don’t have to,” she said again, sliding her body up so she was propped up on her elbows looking at him.

“Cara,” he scoffed, looking at her with a timid smile.

“No, it’s okay,” she said, looking away from him.

“What? You don’t like it?” He asked curiously.

“That’s not it,” she said quietly.

“Then what?” He asked.

“You just… you don’t have to,” she said again.

“I want to,” he told her.

“Oh,” she said quietly, her eyes focused on his collarbone rather than his own eyes.

“Cara…” Liam said, trying to get her attention. Her eyes slow met up with his.

“I don’t know what kind of bloke you’ve been dealing with in regards to this, but I’m the kind of bloke who loves to give as much as receive,” he told her. Her eyes widened as her whole body tingled from his words.

“Yeah. Surprising, or what?” He snickered.

“No. No, just… okay,” she said quietly, giving him consent.

“Okay,” he said with a nod as he pressed forward, kissing her lips, trying to get her to lay back and relax once again.

“Just relax, Cara,” Liam breathed, looking down in her eyes. Cara nodded in response because she didn’t know what else to do or say. Her best friend was about to go down on her and she wasn’t sure how to feel about that. 

Liam’s mouth quickly made its way back down, descending kisses down her frame. Her stomach muscles danced in involuntary response as he did, and she couldn’t help but giggle to herself as she ran her fingers through her hair. Blokes usually tended to skip over this part with her. She only had it done to her on a handful of occasions, and most of the time, the bloke had no idea what he was doing. A part of her was nervous that Liam would be like everyone else. She hoped differently though. 

Liam’s fingertips meet with the fabric of her panties, slowly pulling them down her hips, and then down her legs, before he used his hands to spread her legs apart. She felt exposed, much like she would at the doctor’s office, but this was much, much worse… or better. This was Liam. His eyes raked over her lower half and she couldn’t quite tell if he liked what he saw. But he didn’t stop, so she took it as a good omen.

His hand slid smoothly over her bare thigh, warming the skin under his palm as his lips came down to kiss the top of her other thigh. She couldn’t help but feel nervous. She could feel her body shaking slightly, and hoped Liam couldn’t feel it.

“Relax,” he breathed against her flesh as his lips kissed her leg once again.

“I’m trying,” she told him as she tangled her fingers in the bottom hem of her tank top, trying to keep her hands and mind occupied while he slowly tortured her.

Liam’s lips kissed down her inner thigh, scratching her perfectly with his stubbly face. She shuttered beneath him, trying hard not to groan. He kissed the top of her mound lightly as his hands came up to help him in his quest. Cara jumped slightly with both his hands and mouth on her, causing him to snicker to himself. 

“ _Relax_ ,” he pressed again.

“Shut it,” she mumbled, holding her arm over her eyes as she concentrated on her breathing.

Once Liam’s mouth was fully on her, she was a goner. Her breathing quickened at a rapid pace. She could feel the perspiration forming on her skin, despite the cool conditions of the cottage. Liam was lost between her leg, giving her the deepest pleasure she probably ever felt in her entire existence, and she was losing it. Her heartbeat was nearly ready to pound out of her chest. And then she could feel it – the low tugging deep within her, the pleasure pulling at her insides waiting to be released like a feral creature. Her body strained, her back arched off of the ground, her fingertips curled tighter into his hair as a moan escaped from her lips – a deep satisfying moan as her orgasm ripped straight through her. 

“Oh… oh, oh – _Liam_ …” She groaned as her body shuttered involuntarily under his talented tongue. 

It shuttered once, twice, three more times before her back once again met with the bedding and her chest started to heave with exhaustion as she took in rapid breaths to keep from passing out.

“ _Jesus fucking Christ_ ,” she sighed, running her hand down her face.

“You swear too much,” Liam snickered above her.

“How the hell do you expect me—I mean, come on,” she said, looking up at him incredulously, and all he could do was laugh.

“Are you warm yet?” He smiled down at her. Her half-lidded eyes lazily looked up into his.

“Not quite warm enough,” she breathed boldly, causing his smile to widen on his face.

“Are you sure?” He asked. She nodded her head as she looked into his eyes and he nodded back at her. 

He pulled himself up and over her, straining to grab his jeans that were discarded on the floor in a heap next to their makeshift bed. Cara watched as he pulled out his wallet and retrieved a condom. She couldn’t believe they were really doing this. At least her best friend wasn’t a complete idiot, and used condoms – she appreciated that. 

“Are you _sure_ , sure?” He looked down at her with questioning eyes.

“Do you _want_ me to change my mind, Payno?” She snipped at him.

“No. I just…” He started, before shaking his head and dropping his sentence off.

“I appreciate it,” she said softly. Liam’s eyes looked up into hers and he nodded before giving her a soft smile.

Cara leaned up, grabbing onto the sides of his face as she connected their lips once again. She really appreciated the fluidity in his kisses. He was skilled. She had to give him that.

“Make your move,” she breathed against his lips, dropping back down against the blankets.

He chuckled as he pulled himself up on his knees, his fingertips finding the waistband of his _Calvin Klein_ boxer briefs before pulled them down his legs, exposing himself for the first time to her. Her eyes watched on, not surprised with his size one bit. She had a feeling he was well-endowed just by the way he filled out his jeans.

Liam’s eyes timidly looked up into her and then down at himself as he ripped open the condom, rolling it down his length.

“Skilled professional,” she quipped, smirking up at him.

“Ha-ha,” he said dryly.

“I’m being serious,” she said, smiling at him and he rolled his eyes at her as he hunkered down over the top of her.

He slid his hand up her torso, taking the fabric of her tank top with it, exposing her breasts. She felt the excitement rise up within her, hoping he would use his mouth on them again. And when he did, she let out a satisfied moan, and tangled her fingers in her hair. _Of all the times they missed out on this over the years_ , she thought to herself.

“Please, Liam,” she whimpered, feeling a hungered need inside of her that wouldn’t be satisfied until he was satisfying it.

His lips came up, kissing hers hard as she felt his fingers slid into her once again – just momentarily before she felt his tip press lightly against her entrance. This was it. This literally was the point of no return. They were doing this with each other. And things would change drastically from there on out. Cara knew it. Liam knew it. Yet neither of them hesitated as he slowly pressed himself inside of her. Cara let out a low satisfied moan, like she just got everything she didn’t know she always wanted. 

“Are we good?” Liam asked, after pressing entirely inside of her, stretching her completely around him.

“Perfect,” she hummed, feeling the tugging of her tear ducts behind her eyes.

“Good,” he breathed as he slowly slid back, pulling almost completely out of her before he pressed in once again.

“Oh,” Cara breathed as he filled her fully.

Liam began a steady rhythm atop of her, their breathing quickening almost immediately with the strenuous act. It felt good. It felt _really_ good. And nowhere in either of their minds was a plan to make it stop. They both wanted it, more than they were willing to admit to each other.

Their bodies began to slide perfectly with one another’s as Liam picked up the pace. Cara was having trouble reining in her gasps of pleasure each time Liam pressed back into her. When Liam’s lips came down to kiss hers, she almost felt like she couldn’t breathe. But it was worth it.

“Ohmygod, Liam. _Ohmygod_ ,” she moaned as her desire overwhelmed her.

Liam’s grunts were piercing the air with every single movement he was making. How had they never tried this with each other before? How did they ever manage to keep things platonic? Cara was sure that after tonight, she was going to need therapy to get him off of her brain. 

Cara was moaning out loudly, her eyes shut up tightly, when Liam abruptly stopped inside of her. Her eyes flew open to meet his – about to let him have it, when he started laughing. 

“What?” She snapped at him.

“The lights. They’re back on,” he said, looking around the room. She did the same and saw the whole place illuminated in light.

“Oh. Ha,” she commented, letting out a strained laugh.

“Crazy,” he said, smiling down at her.

“Yeah, crazy,” she agreed. 

His eyes watched hers, making her feel self-conscious under his stare. He was still balls-deep inside of her, but he wasn’t moving. He was just staring.

“Liam,” she breathed quietly. 

He leaned in, kissing her lips quickly before he once again started moving inside of her. She was certain she was close before, but it wasn’t going to take her long to build back up to it – not with the way he was bringing it.

A few powerful thrusts later and Liam was watching Cara ride out her second orgasm of the night. He watched as the skin over her collarbones and the muscles in her neck strained with her pleasure. He watched her eyes shut up tightly and her lips fall open into a perfect ‘O’ as the moans rolled off of her tongue. She was incredible. 

“Keep going,” she breathed out after her body stilled. He kept up a slow rhythm for her, but heightened his pace once again with her words. She was insatiable and he loved it.

It wasn’t long before he felt the tugging of orgasm inside of him. He rocketed his hips as fast as he could until he felt himself explode, his thrusts becoming sloppy and unhinged. He fell forward against her, kissing her lips fiercely as he emptied himself.

They were both panting, they were both exhausted. And one thing was for sure, they were no longer feeling even an inkling of cold.

“I’m properly warmed. Thank you,” Cara breathed in his ear and let out a tiny giggle.

“I’m glad to be of assistance,” he said breathlessly, letting out a light laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on tumblr:  
> http://smile--styles.tumblr.com/


	3. Part 3: made it through the night, but did we really make it?

Cara woke up in a large cocoon of blankets, the sun shining brightly through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the mountain. The snow made everything brighter and all she wanted to do was snuggle back into the blankets, into the warmth away from everything concerning reality – including the dull ache that she could feel in her lower body.

She groaned to herself as memories of the night before flooded her mind. It was something she didn’t want to deal with – the awkwardness with her best friend. She knew it would be inevitable after what they did with each other, and she didn’t want it to be. But as far as she could tell, he wasn’t lying next to her anymore. She was alone in the blankets where they rolled around naked together the night before. She was still wearing the tank top she never took off, and her panties were put back on, which she was certain she did before they fell asleep – because sleeping without underwear was just weird to her.

She sat up, looking around the humongous cottage. Liam just wasn’t there. She sighed, looking down at the blankets that still covered her lap, feeling a sense of stupidity over what she did with him. How could she have let that happen? Even though she was sure it was the best sex she ever experienced in her life.

“Good morning,” she heard Liam’s voice and turned her head quickly to see him standing behind her holding a cup of coffee in his hand. He was fully dressed in track pants, a _North Face_ zip-up, tennis shoes on his feet and a black beanie on his head. He looked _good_.

“Morning,” she mumbled, running her fingers through her unruly hair.

“I made coffee,” he said with a smile.

“What? No breakfast in bed?” She snipped, sounding bitchier than she planned it to sound. Liam rolled his eyes at her, realizing she was in a mood.

“Sorry,” she said softly, eyeing him out of the corner of her eye. He _really_ _did_ look good.

“The lads are gonna be here soon. I just got a text from Niall. They missed the turn too, but they’re on track now,” Liam told her with a small snicker.

“It’s daylight. How did they miss it?” Cara snickered under her breath.

“I don’t know. I thought _I_ was bad last night,” he chuckled.

“You _were_ bad last night,” she laughed, but quickly cut herself off, hoping he knew she meant his driving, not _other_ things.

The front door of the cottage flew open and the sound of their friend’s voices and laughter broke the awkwardness between them. _Great_. She was still underneath the blankets only wearing a miniscule tank top and a pair of panties.

“What’s up? What’s up?” She heard Zayn call out, causing her to roll her eyes.

Zayn was a friend of Liam’s but he was also an old fuck-buddy of Cara’s. They used to get together for booty-calls every once in a while until the relationship went sour. They still tolerated each other, but not much.

“What’s going on in here?” Zayn smirked, looking between Cara and Liam.

“Nothing,” Cara grumbled under her breath as she gave him the stank-eye.

“Are you naked under there, _Care-bear_ _?”_ He asked, smirking mischievously at her.

“Oh, yeah. I was just waiting here patiently for you to show up so we could fuck the _second_ we were in each other’s sights. _Please_ ,” she scoffed sarcastically at him, her eyes narrowing into slits.

“She’s always a bit moody in the morning,” Niall snickered as he brought in his luggage.

“Don’t I know it,” Zayn scoffed as he plopped down on the couch.

Rather than being stuck under the blankets all day, Cara stood up, letting the covers fall off of her scantily clad body as she leaned down and picked up her sweatpants, replacing them on her lower half. She really had no shame. Not around these guys anyway. They’d all seen her in a bikini – some of them saw her in less…

“Good God, woman,” Zayn cat-called at her and she sent him a glare in return.

“You are literally half naked. _Payno?_ _”_ Zayn called out to Liam in an insinuating tone, and Liam just rolled his eyes back at him as he walked into the kitchen to grab more coffee.

“Dude, your clothes are on the ground over here and his clothes are on the ground over there…” Zayn pointed out to Cara, putting two-and-two together as he stood up from the couch.

All the other lads were chatting with each other in the kitchen, it was just Zayn and Cara left in the living room together and Cara didn’t like it.

“You’re an idiot,” Cara grumbled at him as she replaced her sweatshirt on her body. Zayn chuckled as he came up to her and threw his arm around her shoulders.

“What? Am I giving off fucking pheromones or something? Get the fuck off,” Cara snapped, pushing his arm off of her.

“Did you and Liam—” He asked lowly. She rolled her eyes again, picking up the rest of her scattered clothing, not dignifying his words with a response.

“You _did_ , didn’t you?” He pressed on.

“You’re an idiot,” she said again, trying her best to keep on her poker face.

“Oh my god. He finally— _wow!”_ Zayn laughed.

“He finally _what?_ _”_ She snapped at him, her eyes narrowing into slits.

“I knew two people couldn’t _only_ be friends. I knew this would happen eventually,” he laughed.

“Zayn, you’re a fucking idiot. Just shut it,” she scoffed at him.

“With your lack of witty retort, I know it’s gotta be true. You and Liam _boned_ last night,” he said with a taunting snicker.

“Fuck off,” she said as she took off toward the bedrooms where she fully planned on showering off the mistakes of the previous night.

“PAYNO! I know your secret,” Cara heard Zayn say in a sing-song voice as she headed down to the room she picked for herself.

“ _Fucking hell_ ,” she mumbled under her breath, knowing that Zayn lacked the tact to keep his revelation to himself. Everyone would know in a matter of minutes.

Cara showered and dressed, wondering just how bad the blow back was going to be. She was sure they’d never hear the end of it from their friends, thus in-turn only making it even more awkward between her and Liam.

She heard a knock on her bedroom door and immediately flung it open to find Liam standing in front of her.

“Hey,” she said as casually as possible.

“Hey. Can we talk?” He asked. Cara nodded and stepped out of the way for him to come in, shutting the door behind him.

“Did you… did you tell Zayn?” Liam asked uncomfortably, rubbing his hand across the back of his neck.

“Yeah, Liam. I just _had_ to get it off my chest – first thing in the morning. I forgot my diary at home,” she said sarcastically, narrowing her eyes at him.

“Yeah, okay. I figured you didn’t,” he said, slumping his shoulders.

“He saw my clothes, he saw your clothes – and he’s an idiot who only thinks about sex, so of course he came to that conclusion. It’s not his fault that every once in a while he’s right,” she said, still thick with the sarcasm in her tone.

“Yeah,” he said softly.

“What does it matter? We’re adults,” Cara asked, shrugging her shoulders, hoping Liam wasn’t about to turn into a dick like every other bloke she knew. He just shrugged his shoulders, looking down at the floor like it was the most interesting thing he ever saw.

“Look, I’m not just some bird that you shag and leave, Payno. I am your best fucking friend if you haven’t noticed. Let’s not make it weird,” Cara shot at him, and his eyes narrowed slightly at her before he let out a sigh.

“Yeah, so then… okay. We can just leave it be,” he said quietly.

“Leave it be? Sex isn’t _just_ sex, you git,” she shot back as she walked away from him into the bathroom. _Of course_ that’s what he wanted. How perfect.

“I know. _Jesus_ ,” he grumbled, rolling his eyes at the back of her head as he followed behind her.

“We weren’t drunk. We weren’t impaired, Liam. We had sex with full consciousness – fully knowing what we were doing,” she said, stopping to look at him.

“I know,” he said quietly.

“And that isn’t weird to you?” She asked.

“It’s completely weird. It’s fucking weird, alright, Cara? What do you want me to say? You’re the one who just said it didn’t have to be weird!” He said, throwing his hands up in defeat.

“Why did you do it?” She asked.

“What? Why did _you_ do it?” He turned around on her.

“I asked you first,” she shot back and he growled under his breath.

“ _God_ , Cara,” Liam said, rolling his eyes, feeling uncomfortable that they were having this conversation.

“What!?” She yelped at him.

“You— _God_ , you…” Liam scoffed, not knowing where to start.

“Me, what?” She asked impatiently.

“Just shut up,” he growled at her and her eyes widened in disbelief.

“Just… just let me talk,” he said more calmly.

“Alright. Talk,” she said, giving him free reign on the conversation.

“You’ve just always been… you’ve been a girl that’s—that’s on another level then every other girl,” Liam started, shutting Cara up completely as she absorbed his words.

“I mean, you—you’re different. You’re Cara. You’re my best friend. _Care-bear_ ,” he said, shrugging his shoulders, doing his best to avoid her eyes.

Cara’s spirits deflated as Liam instantly ‘friend-zoned’ her. She never really thought of Liam in a romantic light before – he was seriously ‘just Liam’ to her all these years, but after having a taste – after having one night, she was seeing things differently and the last thing she wanted to hear was the dreaded ‘I only see you as a friend’ speech.

“Yeah,” she said softly.

“You’re like queen bee in my eyes. Like, I don’t know – that sounds stupid, but I’ve always put you up on a pedestal, you know?” He admitted.

“You have?” She asked hopefully.

“Yeah,” he said as his eyes slowly looked up into hers.

“Oh,” she said softly.

“It’s not that I never thought I had a chance, it’s just, I never even thought to try because of—of us, our friendship. You’re _you_ and I’m _me_ and we’re best mates, you know,” he said.

“And last night?” She questioned.

“Last night was definitely more than just _‘mates’_ ,” he smirked at her.

“I’d say,” she said quietly.

“So, what—what were _you_ thinking?” He asked, turning the question back on her again.

She looked up into his questioning gaze with big round saucers for eyes. How the bleeding hell was she supposed to answer that?

“Liam…” She breathed lowly.

“Cara,” he said hopeful, looking at her straight in the eye.

“I—I don’t know,” she giggled, feeling her cheeks heat up.

“You don’t know?” He smirked at her.

“It’s hard to… to explain,” she said, feeling bashful. And if there was one thing Cara never felt, it was bashful. That had to mean something.

“Try,” he said quietly.

“You’re my best friend,” she said, looking up into his eyes.

“Mm-hmm,” he said, nodding his head slightly.

“I-I never… last night, I just… _god_ , last night—” She stammered over her words.

“Have I made you speechless, Cara Jane?” Liam smirked proudly at her.

“Shut up,” she laughed and took a swipe at his arm with her hand.

“Cara,” Liam said again, grabbing ahold of her wrist. Her eyes immediately snapped up to look into his, the moment going serious almost instantly.

“Just tell me the truth,” he told her.

“I… I did it because I wanted to,” she said finally.

“Because you wanted to?” He repeated back.

“Yes. I did it because I wanted you,” she revised and watched as his mouth fell open slightly as he took in her words.

“We’re best friends, Liam. And I… I’ve never felt this way before. But, I don’t know… something changed last night,” she tried to explain.

“Last night _everything_ changed,” he said finally.

“Yeah,” she agreed quietly.

“To be completely honest, Cara, I-I’ve never felt this way before either. Well, I mean, you know… like I said, you were always there. I just… I don’t know. Maybe I _have_ felt this way… maybe all along. I don’t… know. I just know that growing up with you, all you ever had to do was look at me or smile in my direction and I’d light up inside. No one else ever did that for me,” Liam admitted as he grabbed one of her hands in his. Cara was left speechless. No one had ever spoken to her with such perfect words. No one had ever cared to.

“Do you understand what I’m saying?” He asked, giving her hand a light squeeze.

“I don’t know. Maybe,” she said quietly, her mind still reeling from his confession.

“Cara…” Liam breathed, and her eyes met up with his again.

But only for a split second before his lips were crashing into hers, hard enough to leave a stinging pain in them, but she had no time to worry about that. It was all tongue and teeth and fingers in hair and hands on hips, and _Liam, Liam, Liam_.

She could taste the hunger in their kiss. It was the same as before – the same as last night. Like a carnal desire being fulfilled within them both. And _God_ , how could she deny herself something like that?

Liam’s hands gripped tightly against Cara’s hips, his mouth still working over hers like a god damn pro as he lifted her gracefully up against him and set her back down on the bathroom countertop. His body fit perfectly between her legs as he edged closer. If he could swallow her whole, it still wouldn’t satisfy his need for her. It was as if something awoken him out of a fifteen year slumber when they were together the night before. Fifteen years of Cara and he only now felt like his eyes were truly open.

Cara’s head leaned back against the bathroom mirror as Liam’s lips moved slowly down her throat. She wanted to rip off every single stitch of her clothing and have him worship her like he did the night before, but she wasn’t sure how much time they had before one of the other blokes came looking for them. And how would they explain this? What would they say when they hadn’t even wrapped their heads around what was going on?

“Liam… Liam…” Cara breathed through her heavy breaths.

“ _Shh_ , Cara. No,” Liam hushed her as his hot breath and stubble stung the sensitive skin of her neck.

His hands slid smoothly up her bare torso, pulling up her shirt with it. Her breathing shuddered in her throat with the feeling of his hands on her again. She no longer wanted to stop them – she didn’t have it in her. Not with both his mouth and his hands on her.

“Just… just quick this time,” she managed to get out through her rapid breathing. She felt the vibration of his laugh against her chest before she heard it and it made her laugh too.

“What?” She asked, smiling at him.

“I was thinking the same thing, but I didn’t want to be the one to say it,” he said, smiling back at her.

“Well, _blunt’s_ my middle name,” she joked, bobbing her eyebrows once at him.

“You have a way of getting straight to the point, don’t you?” He chuckled as his hands came out of her shirt and he stood up fully in front of her.

A part of her was worried she broke the mood completely, but as she watched Liam’s fingertips quickly unzip his _North Face_ zip-up and swipe off his t-shirt in record speeds, she knew things were still progressing exactly how they wanted them to.

His mouth was back on hers just as fast, his arms enveloping around her, pulling her body back to the edge of the countertop. She liked the feeling of his strong arms around her, man-handling her. She would have never tolerated it from him before, but in their current setting, she couldn’t get enough.

Liam’s hands slipped down the front of her body, casually sliding across both her breasts before settling at the fastening of her trousers. He had them open and slid down her hips in a matter of seconds. All Cara had to do was lift her body slightly off of the counter and Liam had them slipped down to her ankles and piled onto the floor in a heap. His palms slid smoothly up the plains of her thighs as his eyes danced over the purple panties she put on after her shower. She watched him lick his lips as his fingers gripped the hem of her grey thermal top, throwing it over her head in one fell swoop.

“Your bra matches your panties,” he pointed out, smiling down at her with a satisfied smirk.

“That wasn’t for you, pretty boy,” she shot back at him playfully.

“Sure it wasn’t,” he snickered, taking her mouth with his once again, pressing their half-naked bodies together.

Cara’s _take-charge_ attitude came into effect as her fingers swiftly pushed Liam’s track pants down his hips and over the swell of his bum.

“Black _Calvin Klein_ boxer briefs,” she whispered against his lips before even getting a look.

“That’s all I wear,” he commented, smirking at her.

“Well honestly, I could get used to you wearing absolutely _nothing_ ,” she said as she tugged them down as well, just enough to expose him before her attention went back to his very arousing mouth against hers.

Liam’s blunt fingertips dug into the flesh of her hips as he wobbled in front of her with his trousers constricting the movement of his legs. She giggled against his mouth as her hands found his bare hips and steadied him. Cara knew her friend was clumsy by nature and lacked the grace to catch himself if he were to fall, and she really didn’t want to end up having sex on the bathroom floor.

“Get these off,” she demanded, trying to tug his trousers down even more.

“Care…” Liam said, looking into her eyes, stopping all advances.

“What?” She asked seriously, looking straight back at him.

“All my condoms are in my room,” he told her.

“Oh,” she said as she bit onto her bottom lip.

“I didn’t really _plan_ this, you know,” he continued.

“Well, um… shit,” she breathed, looking around the room like she’d find a magic solution.

“Well, you’re not stupid are you?” She asked him.

“What?” He asked, giving her a confused look.

“I mean, you’re safe right… with other women? You don’t just shag bare-back, do you? I mean, you use condoms, right?” She babbled.

“No. I mean, yeah. Yes, I use condoms all the time,” he told her.

“So do I. So, um… we could either just stop right here, and walk around like horny teenagers all day… or we could um… just do it,” she said, weighing their options. Liam stared at her for a moment before a sneaky smile grew on his face.

“I’m gonna go with _Nike_ on this one and _just do it_ ,” he chuckled as he pushed down his trousers and boxers before kicking out of them, his cheesy joke causing her to laugh out loud.

“Good choice, Payno,” she told him as he gripped onto the sides of her panties and tore them down her legs.

His mouth was back on her immediately as his hands once again guided her body toward the edge of the countertop. Her legs rest against his hip as he slipped one hand between them, sliding a finger slowly inside of her to see just how ready she was.

“You’re already there, aren’t you?” He smirked against her lips.

“Maybe I have a thing for bathroom sex,” she said with a shrug as he slipped his finger out of her.

“Or maybe you have a thing for me,” he challenged as he slid himself inside of her quickly.

“ _Oh_. Definitely, maybe,” she moaned, letting her head tip back slightly. Liam took advantage of her exposed throat and connected his lips to it as he began moving inside of her.

“Remember – _fast_ , Payno,” she reminded him.

“Don’t worry,” he said through a shuddered breath.

His hips moved faster and his arms held her tighter as her body molded and relaxed completely around him.

“ _Oh, God_ ,” she groaned as the pleasure raced through her almost immediately.

“ _Shh_ , Cara,” Liam breathed in her ear, quietly shushing her.

She couldn’t help it. He made her forget where she was and all about the nosey ears that could easily overhear their _activities_.

Liam’s rhythm never faltered, even when he pulled up slightly so he could pop each one of her breast out of her bra to toy with them using both his hands and his mouth in ways that were easily helping her get off. Cara was moaning and she was aware of it, but she just couldn’t contain herself. Liam’s mouth moved up her chest and then up her throat before he nipped at her jaw line, humming against her skin.

“Cara, you’ve got to be quiet,” he breathed out another warning, continuing his pleasure induced torture in the form of sex.

“Sorry,” she replied, biting her lips together as her fingers wrapped tightly around the edge of the countertop, holding herself in place as her body leaned against the mirror.

With his quickness and her hypersensitivity to _all things Liam_ as of late, it wasn’t long before she felt her body begin to quicken with the rise of her orgasm.

“ _Liam_ …” She breathed, his name rolling off her tongue almost incoherently between a string of moans.

“Cara,” he said with a sting of warning in his tone.

“I just… I can’t,” she moaned, knowing he was scolding her, but she was so lost in him, she didn’t know how to hold back.

Liam stopped for a split second, finding his footing before he began again, even faster and deeper than before.

“ _Ohmygod_ , Liam,” Cara groaned, falling forward against him, moaning into his bare shoulder.

Liam had one hand pressed firmly against the mirror and the other one holding on to her, his lower body doing all the work. His hot breath panting in her ear was only adding to her unraveling.

“Oh, God, Liam. _Oh, God_ ,” she groaned, leaning back against the mirror again.

Liam’s hands slipped up her naked torso, across her chest and up the side of her face, taking in every single detail that he could. He loved watching her fall apart at the seams and knowing it was him that was doing it to her. He knew after this, he would never allow another man to be in this place. He couldn’t. Not when it felt like his whole life was somehow falling into place.

“Please. Oh, God. Oh, _Goddd_ ,” Cara groaned out loudly as her orgasm rocketed through her. Liam’s hand automatically slipped over her mouth, muffling her cries.

All he needed was a few more thrusts and he too was spilling himself into her with a low grunt as he dug his face in the nape of her neck, his hand slowly sliding away from her mouth, down her body. Cara’s fingers slid up on the back of his head, gripping his hair in them as she cradled him with her body.

Liam’s own body collapsed against hers, the side of his face pressed against her chest as he tried to get his heavy breathing under control.

“I don’t think we’re going to be doing much skiing this weekend, to be honest,” Cara offered with a light giggle and Liam could do nothing but laugh in her arms, because he knew she was probably right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on tumblr:  
> http://smile--styles.tumblr.com/


	4. Part 4: falling is worse than hitting the ground.

Cara spent her afternoon skiing with Niall, who was the only one who had the patience to ski down the easier slopes with her. The other guys wanted to be badass and daring, and take off down the black diamond slopes. Whereas Niall was perfectly capable to ski a slope like that, he volunteered to keep Cara company. And he was as good as any instructor around. She had a blast with him and she was proud that she managed to only fall a few times – though she was pretty sure her tailbone was bruised either way.

As she followed Niall into the ski lodge as the sun was setting, Cara felt her phone vibrate in the breast pocket of her jacket. When she took it out, she noticed she had a text from Liam and a huge smile erupted on her face.

“ _Oof_ ,” she groaned as she smacked right into Niall’s back when he stopped in front of her.

“You okay?” He chuckled, looking back at her.

“Uh, yeah. I was texting and navigating… not the best outcome,” she snickered as she wiggled her phone in her hands.

“I’ve gotta call the blokes anyway, we can stop here,” he said, pulling out his own phone as he stepped to the side. She did the same.

_**Liam:** Carrrrraaaaaa. I miss you. Zayn won’t shut it about… things._

Cara snickered to herself because of the fact that Liam was the one that had to deal with Zayn’s incessant questioning all day. If the roles were reversed, Cara was certain she probably would’ve punched him.

_**Cara:** Well, lucky for you I can run interference now since he’s afraid of me._

_**Liam:** Are you off the mountain?_

_**Cara:** Yeah. Are you?_

_**Liam:** We’re in the lodge. Come find me._

“They’re already here,” Cara told Niall, who was on the phone with one of them. She began walking to find them and Niall trudged on behind her, clomping on the floor like a Clydesdale with his big ski boots.

“There,” she heard Niall say and her eyes immediately found Liam’s green jacket as he sat off to the side on a ledge, texting on his phone. Her phone buzzed in her hands and she knew right away it was him.

_**Liam:** We’re by the bathrooms. 1st floor._

“Hey, there,” Cara said as she walked up to him. He looked up and immediately smiled when his eyes met with hers.

“Hey,” he said lowly, cocking his eyebrow at her.

It was still weird to her that this was the new reality between them. They now constantly looked at each other like they wanted to fuck the other one senseless – which, yeah okay, it may be true, but nevertheless it was weird.

“How was your day?” He asked, standing up so they were face-to-face.

“Niall pretty much prevented me from dying, which I am grateful for,” Cara chuckled, looking over at their group of friends who were all animatedly talking about their experiences on the mountain that day.

“Were you that bad?” He asked, smiling amusingly at her.

“No. I’m just… not that good,” she laughed.

“Well, maybe I can give you some _personal_ lessons,” he offered, smirking suggestively at her.

“Niall’s got it covered,” she teased, bouncing her eyebrows at him, purposely toying with him.

“Oh! I see how it is,” he laughed out loud.

“Well, I mean, you were pretty busy off on your _danger, danger_ slopes while I was mucking it up on the bunny hills,” she sighed dramatically.

“ _Cara_ ,” Liam growled playfully.

“What? Afraid of your mate moving in?” She smirked at him.

“Don’t even—” He said, throwing his arm around her neck, pulling her into a headlock.

“Liam!” She shrieked through a giggle.

“Trying to make me jealous,” he said as his free hand tickled at her side.

“Liam! Stop it!” She squirmed and screeched in his arms.

“You’re gonna get it, I hope you know,” he threatened her playfully.

“Liam, I’m kidding. Stop, please,” she giggled uncontrollably and he finally let up.

“Fucker!” She said, pushing him hard as she let out a laugh, before fixing her ponytail.

“You should know not to mess with me, _Care-bear_ ,” he said, smiling smugly at her.

“Well, maybe I won’t be _messing_ with you _later_ ,” she shot back a double meaning at him and his jaw dropped.

“Care- _rahhh_ ,” he said dramatically.

“How do you like that, huh, Payno?” She smirked pompously at him.

“You better take that back,” he warned her with just the slightest of smirks on his lips. She knew deep down she wounded him, even though she knew he knew she was just messing with him.

“Don’t get your panties in a bunch, Payno. I’d still fuck you _six ways till next Sunday_ ,” she said lowly, sending him a quick wink before she turned to walk over to their friends.

“You ready?” Niall asked her sending a look back to Liam and then to her.

“I’m ready. I’m seriously starving,” Cara groaned, ignoring Niall’s sly questioning looks between them.

“Steak night!” Zayn called, standing up enthusiastically.

“Oh, yeah! Let’s get back and grill them up!” Cara said, thinking of the mouth-watering porterhouse steaks the lads brought up with them.

…

Once they got back to the house, they all took turns showering and getting food ready in the kitchen, but one thing was for sure – they all cracked a beer the moment they walked back into the cottage.

“This is exactly what I pictured when Liam first mentioned a ski-trip,” Cara said as she sat around the table with her friends, full on good food, drinking an ice cold beer.

“And what’s that, Cara?” Zayn smirked at her, taking a pull of his own beer.

“ _This_ , Zayn,” she said, swirling her hand around in a circular motion at the table, sending him a slight glare. He smirked back at her mischievously.

“So, did you two miss each other today?” Zayn pressed on, looking between Cara and Liam.

Cara’s narrow gaze turned into slits as she glared at him. He just chuckled in amusement, finding humor in what she wasn’t.

“I mean, it had to have been a long day without each other,” he laughed, pressing on despite Cara’s death glare.

“Ha-ha,” Liam said dryly, rolling his eyes at Zayn as Niall, Louis, and Harry snickered.

“I’m just saying. You two act like we haven’t already caught on,” Zayn chuckled.

“I’m here for _lad’s_ weekend. I don’t know about you,” Cara chuckled with her arms crossed over her chest.

“You’re the cutest damn lad I’ve ever seen,” Harry said, smirking at her as he put his arm around her shoulder.

“Thank you,” she said, smiling back at him.

“Well, then…” Liam said, clearing his throat as he skidded his chair across the floor loudly and stood up from the table. They all just stared at him for a second, wondering why he just made everything weird.

“What?” He asked, looking down at all of them with his plate in his hands.

“Nothing,” Zayn said with a smirk, cocking his eyebrow at his mate.

Liam furrowed his eyebrow for a moment at them, but then proceeded to walk to the sink and began rinsing his plate.

“Harry, you better keep your hands off his woman,” Zayn chuckled.

“Oh, damn,” Harry laughed.

“Just shut up already,” Cara laughed, rolling her eyes at him as she too stood up and cleared her plate. She walked toward the sink next to where Liam was loading his plate in the dishwasher.

“What was that?” She asked Liam lowly.

“What was what?” He asked, eyeing her out of the corner of his eye as he finished his task.

“Nothing,” she said, shaking her head and repeated his motions with her own dishes.

The night winded down with the lads sitting around the big screen TV watching a football match on TV. Cara sat in an armchair, with her legs slung over the side, drinking beer and playing _Candy Crush_ on her phone.

“Tomorrow night can we like actually do something? I mean, this is cool and all tonight, because _Christ_ I’m sore—” Cara began before she heard Zayn snicker like a child.

“FROM SKIING!” She snapped at him as she rolled her eyes.

“Uh-uh,” he laughed.

“No, but seriously, I want to do something. Maybe we could go out,” she suggested.

“Yeah, and maybe Liam can give up his room so I can actually bring a bird back here. I mean, no offense, Niall, but this sharing a room thing is killing my game,” Zayn snickered.

“Where the hell am I supposed to sleep then?” Liam furrowed his eyebrows at him and Zayn sent him back a knowing look.

“Okay, seriously! Even if Liam and I _were_ fucking – what makes you think we’re anywhere near ready to share a bloody room!? Just _quit_ – okay!” Cara snapped at Zayn. Liam’s head snapped in Cara’s direction looking at her like she just slapped him _hard_ across the face.

“I-I didn’t mean it like that. Just… _God damn it_ , Zayn. Just stop being a prick, okay,” Cara growled as she got up from her chair and stomped off to her bedroom.

 

…

 

Cara slipped soundlessly out of her bed in the darkness. She was only wearing a small t-shirt and an even smaller pair of shorts. The air was brisk on her skin, but she didn’t let it keep her from doing what she needed to do. The cottage was quiet as she tip-toed down the hallway toward Liam’s bedroom door. It was the middle of the night, but she couldn’t sleep – not after what she said. Not after the hurt look that Liam gave her. She knew she bruised his ego in front of their friends – and what was even worse is she didn’t mean it. Well, it didn’t come out the way she wanted it to. She just wanted Zayn to jump off their shit, not to take Liam down with her words.

As she slipped quietly into Liam’s dark room, she found him sleeping in his bed. His back was to her as he lay in the big bed all alone. It sent a twinge of regret through her knowing this was not the way either of them imagined the end of the night going.

“Liam…” She breathed as she softly knelt onto the mattress next to him. Liam turned quickly, getting startled by her presence.

“ _Jesus_ , Cara,” he huffed, breathing a little bit heavier as his heart rate increased in his chest.

“Sorry,” she whispered, biting at her lip.

“What are you doing?” He asked, sitting up in the bed, facing her.

“I-I wanted to apologize… for what I said,” she said, dropping her gaze from him. He sat staring at her, feeling the bitterness of her words festering in his chest.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it… like that,” she said, looking up at him after he didn’t respond.

“What _did_ you mean?” He asked trying to keep the sharpness out of his tone as best as he could.

“I just… Zayn was annoying the piss out of me, okay. I just wanted him to shut it about you and I,” she said, letting out a sigh.

“How much longer do you expect to really keep denying it?” He asked, looking up at her and suddenly she felt so one-sided in all of this.

“How long do _I_ expect to keep denying it? I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in this, Payno,” she snapped at him.

“I meant _us_ ,” he spat back. Cara took in a deep breath and let it out hard.

“What? You don’t want them to know?” He asked, staring her down, waiting for her to come up with some bullshit excuse.

“I didn’t say that,” she said defensively.

“So… what then?” He asked, waiting on a decision from her.

“ _What?_ _”_ She asked him, wondering just what the hell he was pressing her about.

“Do you want this or not?” He asked her sharply.

“What I want is for you to take the hostility out of your voice when you’re asking me something like that. Because if I had any doubts in this, I would be saying no because of _that_ right this instant,” she told him.

“You don’t have any doubts?” He asked, his eyes and his voice softening with the realization of what she meant.

“No, you idiot,” she said, trying her best to hold off the smirk that was fighting her frown.

“I don’t either,” he told her honestly, his body relaxing toward her almost immediately. And she couldn’t help it – her smile won.

“We can fight, Cara – I love fighting with you, but I want to be able to make up like we’ve always been able to,” he told her.

“And more,” she added, inching toward him.

“And more,” he agreed, leaning in to connect their lips.

Cara’s arms wrapped around his bare shoulders immediately as he gripped onto her hips and pulled her into his lap. Her legs straddled over him as she perched on top of him, kissing away all their pent-up frustrations. Liam groaned against her mouth as his hands worked up her t-shirt, exposing more and more of her skin.

“I’ve wanted to get at you all day,” he breathed against her lips, before he nipped her bottom lip with his teeth.

“Same,” she breathed heavily, pulling back enough so he could tug her t-shirt off of her body.

“ _Ungh_. You were always right in front of me, Cara,” he said as his hands slid smoothly across her exposed breasts, his lips kissing hers lightly.

“Mmm,” she hummed.

Liam’s lips came down leaving little kisses across the top of her breasts before he sank down, catching her first nipple in his mouth. Cara moaned out aggressively, feeling like she already might explode after the day she had. But Liam’s movements weren’t quick, they were soft and warm and attentive, like he was worshiping her.

“Oh, God, Liam,” she groaned as he teased the next nipple in the same torturous rhythm he did the first.

“I want you so bad,” she breathed, letting the words roll off her tongue with so much passion and truth.

Liam let out a low growl from deep within him as he gripped his hands around her ribcage and tossed her back onto the bed before he pressed himself down on top of her, his mouth taking hers once again. Cara’s palms fumbled to push his boxer briefs down his hips, but she didn’t have the coordination to get the job done – not with Liam pressing his hardness against her most sensitive of areas and kissing her like their last breath depended on it.

“ _Jesus Christ_ , Liam. _Ohmygod_ ,” she groaned breathlessly as he left scraggly beard kisses down her jawline and throat. 

Cara’s back arched off the mattress as Liam’s lips continued to make their way down her body, his hands sliding smoothly across her skin as he did. Her stomach muscles clenched and contracted as he kissed and nipped her skin, her fingers fisting in his hair.

“ _Hmm_ ,” she hummed as she felt his tongue skim the skin right above her panty line.

“You taste so good, Cara,” he told her, his hot breath leaving her skin tingling.

“You _feel_ so good,” she retorted almost immediately, her eyes shutting up tightly as she quietly concentrated on his mouth and hands and the pleasurable anticipation that was racing through her body.

Liam’s dull fingernails scrapped across her hipbones, gathering the fabric of her panties in their clutches as he slid them down her body. His lips kissed up her thighs, both sides, adding to the excitement that she already felt. Liam left a kiss on the top of her womanhood as his fingers slid smoothly up her opening, before dipping inside of her. She felt his tongue dart out and massage her sensitive bundle of nerves, letting an unhinged moan escape her throat.

“Oh, _fuck_ , Liam. _Please_ ,” she whimpered as his fingers slid smoothly in and out of her and his mouth was quickly beginning to make her lose her mind.

His fingers slipped out as his mouth completely took her over for a few mind-blowing, heart-stopping moments of unrestrained pleasure.

“Holy _fuck_ ,” she sighed, her chest heaving, having just come down from her first orgasm of the night.

“Cara – I could watch you get off every day for the rest of my life,” Liam breathed against her skin as he slowly kissed his way back up her naked body.

“Mmm,” she hummed, trying her hardest to swallow what little saliva she had left in her mouth.

“Cara…” He whispered as he slithered up her body. Her eyes opened to find his as he looked down into hers.

“Hmm?” She questioned.

“I want you like this every night,” he told her truthfully.

Her heart began beating even more rapidly in her chest as she contemplated the meaning in his words.

“I want you every night,” he said sincerely.

“I want you,” she managed to say, and she knew she truly meant it.

“You are _mine_ ,” he said with a little growl as his lips crashed into hers hard, his fingers gripping her tightly.

Cara’s palms worked harder than before to push Liam’s boxer briefs down his legs as they kissed. She managed to get them over the hump of his bum before he took matters into his own hands and kicked them off.

He was back at her in a matter of seconds, kissing her hard, as he slid smoothly inside of her. She hissed pleasurably against his lips as he filled her up, sinking himself in completely as she enveloped around him perfectly.

His face sunk into the nape of her neck as his lower half began to move, pushing and pulling him in and out of her, building up his rhythm. Cara’s arms held him tightly around his shoulders as her breathing became ragged and weighted.

“Oh, God, Cara,” Liam groaned against her skin and she loved that she was making him insane just the same as he was doing to her.

“Please. Oh, _God_ ,” Cara whimpered as she felt her body building up another heightened orgasm.

Liam understood what she needed and pressed further and pumped harder to get her off. And soon she was moaning through her second orgasm as he was building up to his first. A few more fast thrusts and Liam’s body began to lose rhythm as the pleasure engulfed him, his mouth moaning against the skin of Cara’s neck.

Cara’s fingertips dug dully into the flesh of his back as she held him against her body. She could feel every sore muscle from the day, but it didn’t matter. All that mattered was where they were now – physically, mentally, and emotionally with each other.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Follow me on tumblr:  
> http://smile--styles.tumblr.com/


	5. Part 5: are we? aren't we?

It was eight am when Liam and Cara woke up together in his bed. It was weird, but it wasn’t at the same time. All Cara knew was that she liked it.

“It’s too bad you’re not ready to share a room together,” Liam quipped as he smirked at her, calling her out on purpose.

“Shut it,” she laughed out loud as she smacked his arm.

“Ow. Abuse,” he chuckled as he watched her pull herself up out of bed. Her naked frame was a pleasant sight to see at such and early hour.

Liam gripped onto her arm and tugged her back down on the mattress, causing giggles to escape her mouth.

“I’m not done with you yet,” he breathed against the sensitive flesh of her neck.

“No kisses,” she said, clamping her hand over her mouth. She wasn’t yet ready to share her morning breath with him. Not when they were still in the beginning stages of everything.

“Maybe I’ll have to find other places to kiss you then,” he said, smirking mischievously as his scraggly beard kisses moved down her collarbone, before going lower and lower.

“Liam,” she giggled as his tongue and teeth teased both of her nipples before his mouth began to move down the valley of her stomach.

She took a sharp breath in as her stomach muscles danced below his lips. Every kiss tickled a bit more than the last and it was hard for her to hold her composure when all she wanted to do was scream out in blissful agony.

Liam’s lips kissed both of her hip bones, before sliding across to the middle of her pelvis.

“ _Oh, Liam_ ,” she breathed, her fingers gripping onto his shoulder blades.

“You’re pretty fucking perfect, Cara,” he hummed against her heated flesh.

“Shut up,” she said, swatting his shoulder, almost feeling embarrassed that he would even say that.

“No,” he retorted and went back to kissing down her lower regions. 

Cara let out an unapologetic moan as Liam’s tongue licked down her folds.

She wasn’t used to this – Liam knew it, he knew it made her uncomfortable but he wanted to break her out of that. He loved getting women off, and nothing was greater than getting Cara off in his opinion.

Her body writhed below him as his tongue swirled and licked her most private of parts. The pleasure came almost immediately as she felt her body already beginning to work itself up to orgasm. Her breathing sped up and her fingers dug into the bed sheets the more and more his mouth worked over her. And when his tongue dipped inside of her, she couldn’t help the moan that broke free from her lips. _Holy God_.

“Liam. _Jesus_ , Liam,” she moaned as her right hand came up to run through her hair.

His tongue and his lips just kept moving over her, determined to bring her to her brink. She felt goose bumps poke up all over her body and she thought she might pass out as the pleasure engulfed her. She could feel her stomach muscles tightening as her breathing picked up and soon enough the waves of pleasure took her over.

She let out another low moan as her orgasm rolled through her, her back arching off the bed. Liam gripped tightly onto her hips to keep her in place as he continued his quiet, torturous ministrations. And then it was over – her body falling completely lax against the mattress, her breathing heavy in her chest, her body tingling all over.

Liam left a few straggling kisses before he slid up her body.

“How’s that for a quick good morning kiss?” He smirked at her, pleased with himself.

“Fantastic,” she hummed, feeling completely sated.

 ...

Once they decided to finally get up, Cara threw on her tank top, panties, and shorts before grabbing Liam’s _North Face_ zip-up off the chair and throwing it on herself for warmth and to cover up the copious amounts of skin she was showing with her _barely-there_ jammies. She knew she was going to have to sneak out of his bedroom and get to her room somehow without being seen, and she figured the only thing that was working in her favor was the early hour of the morning.

As soon as she dipped out of the bedroom door and slowly closed it, she went to make a dash for it. But instead of making a clean get away, she ran straight into Zayn.

“ _Shit_ ,” she grumbled, taking a step back from him, knowing she was in for a mouthful.

“Oh, come on!” Zayn yelped, looking at her incredulously.

“Shut up,” she told him right off the bat.

“What was that bullshit you were spewing last night about not wanting to share a room? _Come on_. I’m stuck sharing and you two are like _willingly_ sharing but hogging an extra bedroom in the meantime,” Zayn huffed.

“Maybe that’s a good thing. Give your libido a rest,” she shot back at him playfully.

“Now why would I want to do that? You sure as hell didn’t want me to do that back when we—” He started, giving her a suggestive smirk.

“UH! Don’t remind me, okay,” Cara cut him off, putting her hand up in the air. Zayn snickered to himself as she set back off toward her room.

“Admit it, I was the best you ever had!” He laughed blithely.

“Dream on, Malik!” Cara chuckled as she slipped into her room to get ready for the day.

When Cara finally came back out, she was showered and dressed, and ready to hit the slopes again – even though her whole body literally ached all over from the previous day’s adventure.

The guys were all eating breakfast when she came into the kitchen and every single one of their eyes were on her as she walked up – like she’d been what they were talking about.

“What?” She asked them bluntly as she walked over to get some breakfast for herself.

“Nothing,” Niall, Louis and Harry mumbled.

“We were just talking about how I caught you coming out of Liam’s room this morning… wearing _his_ clothes,” Zayn snickered.

“Really?” Liam snapped, smacking Zayn across the chest.

“What?” Zayn laughed, looking over at Liam.

“I asked you to just leave it alone,” Liam mumbled under his breath.

“Sorry, dude. You know I can’t,” Zayn laughed as he took a sip of his coffee.

Cara stayed tight-lipped as she took the seat next to Liam, which by the way they were all looking at her as she sat down, she knew it was purposely planned that way.

“Can you please stop staring at me?” She grumbled at them and watched as their eyes all darted back toward their breakfast.

“But… I mean, we’re your best friends. I’m your roommate, Liam. You guys can be honest with us,” Niall blurted out.

Liam’s jaw nearly dropped as he looked up at Niall. He hadn’t thought Niall would be the one to actually call them out. It was so unlike him.

“I’m sorry. I just… you two weren’t quiet last night, okay. It’s kind of hard when you have to sleep with headphones on,” Niall said, his cheeks burning red as he spoke.

“ _Ohh-ho-ho!”_ Zayn laughed out loud.

Harry’s jaw literally dropped with Niall’s words. And it took nearly all Louis had to hold in his laughter.

“ _Ohmygod_ ,” Cara scoffed out a laugh, her own face heating up immediately.

“ _Jesus Christ_ , Niall,” Liam said, trying to hold back his own laugh.

“I’m sorry. I just—I didn’t know how to say it,” he said with an embarrassed smirk on his face.

Liam looked over at Cara shrugging his shoulders, and she sent him a quiet head nod.

“We’re… exploring… the possibility… of _us_ …” Liam offered the group.

“Sounds like you’re doing more than exploring any possibility,” Zayn snickered.

“Seriously, Malik – shut up,” Cara chuckled, throwing a piece of her roll at him.

“I’m happy for you. Thank you for finally admitting it,” Niall said, smiling at them.

“Thanks,” Liam told him as he quietly slid his hand onto Cara’s lap underneath the table and squeezed her thigh.

 ...

Liam spent the day with Cara on the easier slopes, hoping she wouldn’t hold the first day of skiing against him. In hindsight, he knew he should have been the one with her instead of Niall, but those black diamond hills were so tempting.

He really enjoyed himself with her and it was just so cute to watch her ski, like a little Bambi deer learning how to first walk. But as soon as they decided to get her strapped up to a snowboard, she seemed to do much better.

When they all had enough skiing and snowboarding for one day, the group went back to the cottage to get ready to go out for the night, per Cara’s request. There was a bar close to the lodge they saw and they were planning on having a good time.

“Hey,” Cara heard as Zayn came out into the living room while everyone was off in their respective bedrooms. Cara never thought she’d be the first one ready in a house full of blokes.

“Hey,” she said as she watched Zayn take a seat next to her one the couch.

“How you doing out on the slopes?” He asked, starting a pleasant conversation, which was big of him.

“I’m better. I started using a snowboard today and it seems to be going well,” she told him.

“Sometimes snowboards are easier to control because it’s just one piece of equipment you have to worry about controlling,” he said, nodding contemplatively.

“And that was exactly my problem. I always felt like one ski was going one way and the other was going in a whole other direction. Left me flat on my bum a lot,” Cara snickered lightly.

“I can imagine,” he chuckled.

Both of their eyes fell onto the TV screen and the two of them sat there quietly watching the local news, just waiting for the rest of the lads to come out.

“Liam’s a good bloke, Cara,” Zayn said, startling her a little bit. All she could do was look over at him with a questioning look. Like, why would he even need to say something like that to her?

“I’m just saying,” he chuckled, holding his hands up in a defensive stance.

“I _know_ he is,” she said with a hint of attitude in her voice.

“I just hope you actually give him a solid chance,” he continued as his eyes fell back on the TV screen.

“What is that supposed to mean?” She asked him, trying not to actually bite his head off with her words.

“He really likes you. I can tell. Just… I don’t know… just some of the things you’ve said make it sound like you’re not as into it as he is. I mean, I’ve seen the way he looks at you. It’s the same way that I used to look at you,” he explained.

Her breathing caught into her throat with his honest words. She never thought that her relationship with Zayn was ever based on feelings of any kind – unless physical ones counted. And she never counted them... ever.

“I-I… I like him,” she managed to say.

“Alright,” Zayn said with a nod and dropped the subject altogether.

It wasn’t long before the rest of the lads came wandering out of their bedrooms, and they were all squeezing into the SUV, heading out for the night.

The pub was nearly packed when they got in, but they managed to snag a table back by the dart boards. There was a jukebox in the corner that was pumping out loud music and there was a constant humming of even louder voices trying to talk over the music. Zayn bought the first couple pitchers of beer for the group and they all indulged – even Harry had a glass, and technically he wasn’t even supposed to be allowed in the pub because he was underage.

Cara and Liam sat at the table while the others played darts.

“I can’t believe what Niall said this morning at breakfast,” Cara snickered as she snuggled up to Liam, the alcohol already taking an effect on her.

“I know. I was definitely speechless,” Liam laughed as he took a gulp of his beer.

“Little Nialler. Ohmygod. Were we really that loud?” Cara giggled.

“I didn’t think so, but I don’t know. Maybe. I was really… I don’t know… in the moment,” Liam chuckled.

“I was too,” she said, smiling at him, leaning up to kiss his lips.

It was a big thing for them, showing any kind of affection for one another in a public setting. They actually felt like a couple as they sat there so close, being able to acknowledge each other the way they wanted to, and kiss and touch when they wanted too. It was liberating.

“I’ll be right back. I’m gonna get us another round,” Liam told her, giving her another quick kiss as he got up from the table.

Moments later, Liam’s iPhone vibrated on the table top. Cara’s eyes immediately looked down at it, noticing Chloe’s name flash across the screen. Jealousy immediately bubbled up inside of her at the thought of Liam still texting her. Cara looked up to see Liam across the bar talking to the bartender. And without really thinking it through, her finger swiped across the lock bar on his phone, and opened up the text message.

_**Chloe:** I miss you. Can’t wait for you to get back._

Cara’s stomach clenched as the anger rose up inside of her. Was he still talking to her, still pursuing her? Her thumb flicked down across the screen, bringing more of their text history into view and she noticed that Chloe text him last night and he text her back.

_**Chloe:** Are you having fun up there?_

_**Liam:** Yeah. It’s decent._

_**Chloe:** When are you coming home again?_

_**Liam:** Sunday._

_**Chloe:** I can’t wait to see you._

The conversation ended there, until she just sent the most recent one. He didn’t said anything to confirm that he had plans to see her, but what really ticked Cara off was that he didn’t deny her either – he didn’t tell her things changed. Cara’s breathing became heightened as she put back Liam’s phone the way he left it on the table.

“Hey, where did Liam go?” She heard Niall ask, startling her out of her thoughts.

“Bar,” she answered quickly as she got up off of her stool.

“Alright,” he said with a nod.

“I’m gonna go to the loo,” Cara said, grabbing up her purse before she weaved her way through the crowd into the ladies room.

It was ridiculously packed as girls surrounded the mirror trying to fix their make-up, like it was the god damn prom or something. Luckily Cara managed to snag one of the stalls right as a girl was coming out. She just sat down on the toilet, putting her head in her hands as she tried to take a few breaths to calm down.

Maybe he had an explanation as to why he was still stringing Chloe along. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as she thought. But she couldn’t help the negative thoughts that continued to fill her mind either. She was a pessimist by nature and she wasn’t sure if she could handle life if Liam turned out to be just another arsehole in her long list of arseholes. Liam was her best friend. She was sure she couldn’t handle it.

She pulled herself together enough to come out of the stall and meet back up with the group. Liam and Niall were at the table talking while Zayn and Harry were playing a heated game of darts.

“I’ve got next,” Cara told the duo as Zayn threw a dart straight into the bull’s eye.

“Hell yes!” Zayn cheered and Harry rolled his eyes.

“Looks like it’s me and you, _Care-bear_ ,” Zayn said, smiling at her as he threw his arm around her shoulder.

“Come on,” Cara said, rolling her eyes as she walked toward the board and pulled out the darts for him.

Cara ended up winning against Zayn, in which he went into a rant about how she apparently cheated. So the two of them decided to do _best out of three_ as they continued to drink many glasses of beer. Soon all of their friends were watching the heated match of darts, including Liam, but Cara was doing everything in her power to steer clear of him.

Zayn won the second game, but Cara reigned victorious by beating him during the third game.

“I’m drunk. That’s your only saving grace, Care-bear!” Zayn laughed, pointing at her.

“Yeah, right. Feed me another excuse. I beat you. And I didn’t have to cheat to do it!” She laughed.

“Congratulations,” Liam said to her, poking at her side.

“Thanks,” she said coldly, causing Liam’s eyebrows to furrow in question.

“Hey, what’s going on with you?” He asked, gripping her arm lightly, pulling her away from their friends.

“Nothing,” she said passively, lying through her teeth.

“Bullshit, Cara. What happened?” He asked her.

“Come on, you two. We’re leaving,” Niall called to them with a swipe of his hands through the air.

“We’re leaving,” Cara said to Liam as she snaked passed him toward the group, grabbing her jacket and purse.

The car ride was quiet with Cara sitting in the front with Niall. Everyone could feel the tension between her and Liam just by that one act of distance.

“Okay, seriously. What the hell did I do?” Liam asked Cara as she headed toward her bedroom once they got back to the cottage.

“Nothing,” she said again.

“Cara, stop it. What? Did you see me talking to the bartender and think I was flirting, or something?” He asked, trying to guess what the drama in her head was.

“Were you?” She snapped at him.

“No! I wasn’t,” he growled and she rolled her eyes, proceeding into her bedroom.

“Was that it? You thought I was flirting with the bartender? Cara, she wasn’t even cute,” Liam pressed on.

“Oh, so if she was cute, then you really would have?” She snapped at him.

“Cara,” Liam sighed, rolling his eyes. Cara walked to the dresser and pulled out pajamas for the night, in an act to avoid him.

“Tell me what’s really bothering you,” Liam said, his voice evening out, trying to get to the bottom of whatever she was angry about.

“You got a text from _Chloe_ ,” she turned and snapped at him. He let out a large sigh and she narrowed her eyes at him.

“She _misses you_ , by the way,” she said with as much attitude as she could muster.

“Cara,” Liam breathed.

“Is this all just a game to you, Liam?” She asked incredulously.

“Cara, no,” Liam said, shaking his head.

“When are you going to tell her you’re not available for _booty calls_ anymore, huh?” Cara snapped.

“I’m gonna tell her,” Liam sighed.

“When? When she’s knocking down your door waiting to be fucked?” Cara spat at him.

“Cara, no. Can’t we just— _God_ ,” Liam sighed, getting aggravated.

“You were texting her last night!” She shot at him.

“I wasn’t texting her because I wanted to fuck her. _Jesus_ , Cara. Just because I’m replying to a text that someone sends me doesn’t mean I’m down to fuck, okay,” Liam yelled back at her.

“Well, it just feels like maybe you’re not really willing to give up your _new-girl-every-week_ lifestyle,” Cara said quietly, her eyes shying away from Liam’s.

“That’s not fair, Cara,” Liam growled. Cara sighed, feeling torn between wanting to just put it all behind them and being the stubborn girl she was born to be.

“I don’t know what to do, Liam. I don’t know how to feel about this,” she said, feeling as if her emotions were ganging up on her.

“ _Trust_ me,” he breathed, and her eyes looked up into his.

“Trust me, Cara. I’m your best friend. We’ve had each other’s backs forever. Just… trust me,” he breathed as he took a few steps toward her, reaching out to take her hands in his.

“Please,” he pressed as she looked up into his eyes.

Slowly Cara nodded her head, going with her gut instinct. Liam never did anything to ever make her think twice about trusting him and she knew that even now, in their revised relationship, that she needed to give him the benefit of the doubt.

“Thank you. I promise I won’t let you down,” he breathed against her lips as she wrapped her arms loosely around his neck.

“Please don’t,” she breathed just before their lips connected in a soft, inviting kiss.

“I promise,” he said again and she believed him.

**Author's Note:**

>   
>    
>  **Predictable? meh. Fantastic? yay!**   
>  **I would love it if you left a comment or a kudos! Thanks so much!**   
>  ****  
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